Amiri Fall Winter 2022-23 Fashion Show

Amiri’s singular journey cornerstones the Autumn-Winter 2022 collection, which marks Mike Amiri’s debut runway show in his home of Los Angeles. Mike finds inspiration close to home, amongst the creative spirit of Los Angeles’ Arts District, and more specifically in his friendship with contemporary US artist Wes Lang, whose studio neighbors AMIRI’s. Guided by the house’s tenet that artistic expression needs to be uninhibited and intuitive, the collection unites design house and art studio to explore a dialogue between the two contemporaries.

Directed by this season’s narrative, the colour palette mixes the artist’s compositions with AMIRI’s rich, earthy signatures: hues of birch, sycamore green and demitasse brown blend with deep tones of grey and black.

Guided by the designer's hand, archetypes evoke traditional menswear codes and formal fabrications distorted with the uniforms of modern America: references to leisure, workwear and a distinctive West Coast personality.

Deconstructed yet precise, silhouettes embody the textural freestyle of artistic creation: a loose, elongated shape is drawn with trademark kick-flare trousers, held by sculptural shoulders inspired by workwear fits, pieces layer and overlap intuitively, creating a richness of composition similar to that of a painting.

Invited into Wes Lang’s archive, Mike Amiri saw the opportunity to not simply translate the artworks but evolve them through his own artistry. Again, applying layers; both physically and figuratively to create new. Therefore graphics are authentically developed from life-size artworks to become limited-edition compositions within a vibrant, creative conversation.

Wes Lang’s synonymous Grim Reapers, folk totems and scattered text elements are brought to life as abstract intarsia knitwear, hand embroidery and impasto brushstrokes that animate surfaces.

Traditional tailoring is transformed through leisurewear sensibilities and utilitarian structures. A wool jumpsuit is an elevated yet effortless take on a tracksuit, outerwear is rendered in soft cashmere, shearling and faux fur, and silk shirting embodies a louche formality. Boxy jacket shapes draw workwear proportions while the artisanal warmth of the American quilt is translated as generous outerwear. The hems fringed to move with the breeze. That drape across the body with nomadic spirit.

Accessories and footwear elaborate on the season’s visual narrative. Leather crossbody bags are worn high, encouraging new silhouette lines, and selected works by Wes Lang are traced across a new slim tote silhouette, branded with this season's gallery tag.